Ultimate Blood Pressure Monitor Buying Guide for You

Last updated on February 9th, 2023 at 04:56 pm

Ultimate blood pressure monitor buying guide.

Blood pressure monitors are must-have portable health devices for every home, but when we plan to buy one for ourselves we get confused. With so many available options to choose from it becomes really difficult to pinpoint one single device.

In this article, I will break down different two types of at-home BP monitors. We will also walk through how to choose one for yourself and your family. Read this article till the end so that you can make a well-informed decision.

What do I look for when buying a BP monitor?

Choosing a digital blood pressure monitor for yourself can be confusing, and the decision making becomes even more complex with numerous choices to choose from. But, it simply depends on your need and physical condition. Here in this blood pressure monitor buying guide, I will be describing three different kinds of digital blood pressure monitors, reading them carefully to make an informed decision.

Types of BP monitor

#1 Digital arm blood pressure monitor

Digital blood pressure monitors are portable machines that you can easily use it at home. It consists of an inflatable arm cuff and the main unit. The arm cuff and main unit are connected via a rubber tube which is called an air tube.

You just need to wrap the arm cuff over your arm and switch on the device to take a reading. When you switch on it, the air from the main unit is pumped into the cuff via an air tube to inflate the cuff.

You can read this post for the step-by-step method to use digital blood pressure monitors at home. With the advancement of technology, these digital arm blood pressure monitors are using wireless technology. 

#2 Wireless Digital BP Monitor

In the wireless upper arm, BP monitors the monitoring device is connected to the smartphone via Bluetooth connection. You have to download a dedicated app provided by the manufacturer and activate it over your phone. By activating the app it will automatically take the reading and will store all the previous readings in the app.

So it becomes a hassle-free and easy way to operate. It makes it easy to access your all previous readings wherever you go whenever you like.

#3 Digital wrist BP Monitor

The Wrist BP monitors are portable devices that is needed to be placed at the wrist joint just like a wristwatch you just need to switch on the device to take the reading.

Pros and cons

• The wrist digital blood pressure monitor could be less accurate than the arm cuff. This is because the reading needs to be taken at the level of the heart, arm lies at the level of the heart (keep wrist elevated at heart level for an accurate reading).
• It can be a good option if somehow the arm cuff doesn’t fit on your arm. This could be simply because your arm very large ore it hurts when you wear the arm cuff

However, the arm cuff also comes in various different sizes of cuffs. You can choose the arm cuff according to the size of your arm.

Things to consider when buying BP Monitor for home

The most important thing is to choose the device that is right for you and that serves your purpose. Here is some of the point you can consider when making your decision:

1. Ease of use: The market is full of different brands and designs. You should look for a device that is easy to use. However, you can watch one of my videos on how to use digital blood pressure monitors at home. Almost every brand operates in more or less in a similar manner.
2. Main power adaptor: Though all digital blood pressure monitor is battery operated, sometimes you also need a power adaptor. Not all digital brand comes with the option to operate from a power adaptor.
3. Irregular heart rate display: Some brands do have an irregular heart display when you are taking your blood pressure the device also records the Heartbeat so so if there is any irregular heart rate it should be displayed on the screen.
4. Hypertension indicator: We all know that blood pressure is 120/80. But how much is high/hypertensive and while taking we may simply ignore it. So when making your buying decision check whether it has a WHO hypertension indicator.

Final comments

The first company to come up with digital blood pressure monitor Technology was Omron. However, the manual blood pressure monitors or sphygmomanometer that is based on Mercury are still most reliable.

The downside of this manual sphygmomanometer is you should have the technical knowledge to use it. And of course, the experience of using this device is essential. It is very difficult for a non-medical person to learn and use the sphygmomanometer.

This is why digital blood pressure monitors were introduced. So that you just need to switch on the machine to take the reading, it makes our life really hassle-free. 

Keep Reading: What High Blood Pressure Causes? Ways To Cure Hypertension Naturally